June 30th

It can be said without reservation that this year’s festival was a rousing success.
It was the first time the event has been a true weekend affair, running from Friday-Sunday. The schedule change held many benefits, not the least of which were better compatibility for people traveling from out of town and less hassle for downtown merchants facing closed streets and rerouted traffic.
After a brief bout of rain Friday afternoon, Mother Nature cooperated for the duration of the festival with sunny skies and even the occasional breeze.

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While it seems there are plenty of local art workshops available for children, I have noticed that affordable adult programs have been slightly lacking. That’s why I’m excited about the Brown Building, an art class space in its infancy, which is currently being overhauled.
Located at 303 W. Georgia St., Ruston, the gallery will host art activities several times weekly for adults in a laid back environment.
Beginning Tuesday, informal art classes on Mondays, Tuesdays and Thursdays will be ongoing.
The schedule is as follows:
• Monday, noon-1 p.m.— Visual Venting

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Ruston’s Wesley Boersma, David Boersma, Aaron Boersma and Tim Kennedy also provided support.
“It went well for being a first-time camp, I thought,” Moats said. “We’ve had a lot of participation, and we are pleased with the way things have gone.”
The camp attracted an estimated 70 participants.
Included on the daily schedule were three-hour sessions in the morning and afternoon, intermixed with an early morning breakfast, lunch break and early evening dinner.
A luau, Madden interactive tournament and additional free times were also featured on the schedule.

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Early in the day, crowds were thick at festival attractions like Railroad Marketplace, the Antique Car Show, the Diaper Derby and the Civic Center’s Arts and Crafts Show. Although the intense midday heat sent many running for the comfort of their air-conditioned homes, Saturday night’s Peach Jam brought them back with performers Mason Granade and headlining act Asleep At The Wheel.
Sunday’s lineup has more fun in store, including the always entertaining Pet Show and Peach-Eating Contest.

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You’ll probably see me at the Peach-Eating Contest (observing, not competing) and definitely at the Pet Show with my best friend, Hollie.
Any time Hollie and I have a chance to spend a day together, it feels like old times. We’ve been friends for 13 years, and our relationship has been one of the best things in my life ever since the day we met.
It was orientation day at my high school; we were both incoming freshmen, and we immediately hit it off. Throughout the four years of high school, we were inseparable. There were several times we even passed ourselves off as sisters.

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Louisiana’s Legislature just wrapped up a $30 billion budget bill this past week, and questions about the legitimacy of some 11th-hour spending decisions have been raised.
Accounts with a Monroe-based firm presented the good news of the audit to the Police Jury at a special meeting on Thursday, and the Police Jury was appropriately happy to see that the work of the parish administration is running according to the best practices available.

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The former Tamishia Collinsworth was captain of Tech&#146;s pompom girls back in 2004 when her husband was garnering praise as the WAC “Offensive Player of the Year.”
And it was then the idea of a way to “give back” first came up.

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Weather, however, is always a factor with outdoor events, she said, which is part of the reason a tent has been placed over the stage at Railroad Park. Additionally, Bergeron said the vendors typically utilize tents.
“Last year, most (vendors) just pulled their tents down around them and waited for (the rain) to be over,” she said. “When the sun came back up, they came back out again.”

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June 27th

He was heading back to Denver, Colo., the home base for the Western Athletic Conference, where he serves as the commissioner.
Figure on the WAC being more familiar to sports fans now after what transpired in Omaha on Wednesday night.
Fresno State University pulled off arguably the greatest rags-to-riches story in NCAA championship competition by winning the College World Series with a 6-1 final game victory over Georgia.

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